The Ouya console’s woes continue as the first game green lighted under its Free the Game crowdfunding scheme has left a paper trail of red flags indicating unethical business practices.

The Android console manufacturer recently set aside US$1 million and offered to match, dollar for dollar up to $250,000, any Kickstarter funded game that built in a six-month window of exclusivity on Ouya.

In total, 40 games signed up for the scheme and 11 are currently undergoing crowdfunding campaigns.

In a press release, Ouya announced that two games have already met their target and qualified for additional funding. Elementary, My Dead Holmes reached its US$50,000 target with 17 days to spare, and Gridiron Thunder reached its $75,000 target with 13 days to spare.

However, the legitimacy of Gridiron Thunder’s funding has been called into question by amateur sleuths on the Internet. Gridiron Thunder had only 126 backers, meaning the average pledge was uncommonly astronomical, over $600. Equally unusually, the majority of backers did not request any reward for their pledge.

Moreover, a large number of accounts backed only this project, and have no history of backing any other. There were multiple instances of duplicate names and celebrity portraits, strongly suggesting these were smurf accounts.

Those who uncovered this suspicious activity alleged that the developer of Gridiron Thunder, MgoTXT, put up the money itself in order to secure the additional sum from Ouya.

In a statement to Gamasutra, MgoTXT CEO Andrew Won said, “We are not trying to do something improper with Ouya’s Free the Games promotion, and we are in full compliance with both Kickstarter’s and Ouya’s rules.”

“We have had some generous donors but so have other Kickstarter campaigns,” continued Won. “In our case, we have very deep roots in Silicon Valley and great ties to fellow tech entrepreneurs in the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. We also have friends in the professional sports world who want to see us succeed. I don’t think there is anything wrong with having generous supporters, and we make no apology for this. It does not violate any Kickstarter or Ouya rule.”

Ouya has not commented on the allegations.